Music transforms lives in the feel good Rudderless

A highly emotional performance

It's one of those rare films that poignantly explores the human condition at its most fragile, showing what happens when a man trying to forget his past stumbles across a box of unpublished music from his former life and forms a small band which experiences local success and ultimately changes his life and the world around him.

Billy Crudup is sensational in a highly emotional performance as a former high-profile advertising executive whose life is torn apart when he loses his son Josh to gun violence. Living off the grid on a docked sailboat, he wastes away his days while drowning his pain in alcohol until he discovers a box filled with his son's demo tapes and lyrics. For the first time in his life he gets to know who his son really was and in an effort to reconnect with his son he begins to explore his son's unknown talent, obsessively learning his songs, until one day he decides to play one of them at a local bar.

It is here where he meet a young musician, featuring a powerful performance by Anton Yelchin, and the two unlikely friends decide to form a rock 'n' roll band called Rudderless that becomes surprisingly popular and revitalises both of their lives.

An inspirational musical drama

Macy has gifted us with a poignant and inspirational musical drama about the power of love, forgiveness and redemption.

For his directorial debut, Macy was prepared to step outside his comfort zone. "Everyone told me directing was a monstrous amount of work, and everyone was right. It was the most exhausting, intense and overwhelming thing I've ever done. It was also the most thrilling, rewarding and invigorating thing I've ever done. I fell in love with this business all over again. And now, all I want to do is direct."

Macy was inspired by Casey Twenter and Jeff Robison brilliant screenplay. "It was an important story; it had music and humor and great characters. I called Casey, on 1 Apri as it turned out, and told him I'd like to do it. Casey called Jeff and had some difficulty convincing him that he wasn't pulling an April Fools gag. We spent about two years tweaking the script and trying to get it produced. Everything came together when we sent it to Keith Kjarval to produce. Keith put all the pieces together quickly, so after two years, I was suddenly behind schedule."

Music as a major character

One of the major characters in the film is the music. Josh's songs are all Sam has left of his son, and as the script developed, six of those songs became set pieces in the film. "I knew that if those songs weren't good, the film would never recover," says Macy who contacted musical advisor Liz Gallacher and put the word out in the indie rock world that they were looking for songs.

Macy discovered stunning songs by Simon Steadman and Charlton Pettus. The first song Macy fell in love with is the memorable 'Home', dealing with trying to get back home and really connects with the internal journey of the characters. "I decided these were my guys," says Macy. "They stayed on for the whole film; we did our pre-records in Charlton's garage. They are the reason the music in the film is so good."

A cinematic gem

Rudderless clearly celebrates the potency of independent filmmaking.

"I'm moved when I remember how hard everyone worked on this film," says Macy. "The fourth week of shooting, I looked at my genius cinematographer, Eric Lin, and there was something odd about him. It took me a while to realise what it was: he was sitting down. I think that was the only time I ever saw him sit in 25 days."

"I hope you get to see the film. Prepare to lose your heart to Billy Crudup. His last moment in the film is one of those cinematic gems you wait your whole life for. Billy and Anton Yelchin are so perfect and delightful you'll want to bottle them."

A journey into the heart and soul

Rudderless is an exceptional journey into the heart and soul. It is not simply a story about music and putting a band together, but a tearful journey into a father-and-son story that will break your heart. You will leave the cinema humming the songs but most of all, the story will remain with you forever. It's a film that reminds us how important it is to make the most of the time we share with friends and loved ones, and how we find ourselves through those who come into our lives.

Be warned that Rudderless has an amazing twist so beware of spoilers that will ruin the experience.